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By Barbara Slavin As the Middle East continues a downward spiral, two important U.S. allies that had seemed relatively stable – Israel and Turkey — are both confronting significant new violence. In Israel, a spasm of Arab attacks — and Israeli retaliation — is prompting fears of a third intifada. The government of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu […]

A weak president Obama may be. But a paradox of his presidency is that he has been at his toughest in fighting for the Iran nuclear deal against Netanyahu, the leader of one of America’s closest allies.

We are now in the 48th year of the Israeli occupation of the West Bank. Hope for a two-state solution dims by the day. Right now, there are influential figures on the center-left, in America and in Europe, and certainly in the developing world, who believe that Israel is becoming an apartheid state

‘When it comes to Iran’s nuclear capability, this [deal] is the best option,” wrote retired Israeli Admiral Ami Ayalon, former head of Israel’s secret service agency Shin Bet, in a full-page ad in The New York Times newspaper. The ad, signed by more than two dozen leaders in the American Jewish community, directly opposes Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanhayu’s very public criticism of the accord. A Congressional vote on the pact will take place next month. In the meantime, members of the American Jewish lobby find themselves split over a deal that everyone agrees will have long-term consequences.

With a September deadline hanging over the US Congress to vote on the accord, stakeholders are out in force, either selling or debunking the deal. President Obama said the choice is between diplomacy or “some form of war” during remarks in Washington. Opponents in turn burned up the web, arguing Tehran can never be trusted.

None of them, from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin “historic mistake” Netanyahu to U.S. Senator Lindsey “it’s a declaration of war on Israel” Graham, has yet risen to the challenge of offering a better real-world alternative

To expect an already risk-averse Netanyahu, dependent on a coalition largely of religious and right-wing parties, to make bold and even consequential choices on key issues such as peace is to expect too much.